A new national study of male students who are black or Hispanic suggests that they get better grades in college if they go through college-preparatory outreach programs before their freshman year.

Terrell L. Strayhorn, an assistant professor of higher education and sociology at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, conducted the study by analyzing data on black and Hispanic males collected as part of the U.S. Education Department’s National Education Longitudinal Study. He found that those who had gone through “bridge” programs intended to help their transition to college went on to earn higher grades than comparable students who lacked such additional college preparation.

On most college campuses, the difference between the two groups was equivalent to the difference between a C+ or B- grade-point average and a solid B average, Mr. Strayhorn says. Black men appeared to benefit slightly more from such programs than Hispanic men did.

Mr. Strayhorn notes in a paper summarizing his findings that such outreach programs differ in their offerings, with some focusing on specific academic subjects, others on building self-esteem or teaching practical skills such as financial planning. Because his analysis lumped all such programs together, it leaves open the question of whether some programs help students significantly more than others. Being focused entirely on black or Hispanic men, his analysis also leaves open the question of how such programs benefit women or male students of other races or ethnicities. —Peter Schmidt